Once you obtain a business license, you must file tax returns on schedule — even if you have no income, you still need to submit a return with all zeros.

There’s no direct cost involved. You can file electronically via the tax service portal monthly or quarterly in just a few minutes. Hiring an accountant, however, adds extra expense. If you do hire someone, you must also register for social insurance within 30 days of business establishment. The real challenge is remembering to file on time even during months with no business activity.

The law clearly states that “taxpayers with no tax liability during a period must still file a tax return as required.” In other words, even when you owe nothing, filing remains mandatory. Non-compliance brings penalties: tax authorities can order corrections and impose fines up to 2,000 yuan; repeat or severe violations may exceed 10,000 yuan. Any unpaid taxes plus daily late fees at 0.05% must also be settled. Furthermore, persistent non-filing leads to automatic classification as a non-compliant taxpayer, blocking invoice issuance until corrected and penalties paid.

国务院 (2002). 税收征收管理法实施细则（国务院令第 362 号，第三十二、七十五条）. https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100010/c5195082/content.html ; 全国人大常委会 (2015). 税收征收管理法（2015 年修正，第二十五、三十二、六十二、六十四条）. https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100009/c5195081/content.html ; 国家税务总局 (2019). 关于税收征管若干事项的公告（国家税务总局公告 2019 年第 48 号，第三条）. https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100012/c5195194/content.html ; 全国人大常委会 (2018). 个人所得税法（2018 年修正，第十二条）. https://fgk.chinatax.gov.cn/zcfgk/c100009/c5193028/content.html ; 全国人大常委会 (2018). 社会保险法（2018 年修正，第五十七条）. http://www.npc.gov.cn/zgrdw/npc/xinwen/2019-01/07/content_2070267.htm

With the “multi-certificates integration” policy, a separate tax registration isn’t needed. Use your business license’s unified social credit code to log into the electronic tax portal and specify applicable taxes. Individual businesses and sole proprietorships pay individual income tax on business earnings. Payments are first due within 15 days after month or quarter-end, followed by an annual settlement by March 31 of the following year to adjust any over- or under-payments. Even without any revenue, zero returns must still be filed. Three consecutive months of non-filing results in automatic classification as a non-compliant taxpayer, halting invoice use; cancellation procedures then become far more complicated — see Section 12.23 for details on orderly business closure.